Watchkeeper
The Albatron ONE-Five Surveillance Protocol, often known the Watchkeeper, is a semi-sentient Artificial Intelligence that is one of three core components to the Albatron Infrastructure. It serves as a Personal Management Interface for the general population, however it's true purpose is far more sinister than simply acting as accounting software - it acts as the primary surveillance tool of the Inquisition, and to that end gives the Union complete access to personal privacy, most often without their victim's knowledge. Background The idea of a Personal Management Interface came into being long before the Benevolent Dawn, however most of the options available for consumers were decentralised and limited in functionality. It was only in 2052, following the foundation of the College of Wisdom, that a concentrated effort was made to create an infrastructure that would allow citizens to control every aspect of their life from the comfort of their home. With the advent of the Persistor Infrastructure in 2055, the first completely centralised Personal Management Interface was introduced into the home of the every-man. This primitive interface was not specifically named like later versions would be, and whilst allowing remote access to personal finance and social hubs was somewhat limited in functionality. In addition, the Confidentiality Pact of 2039 prohibited the use of personal electronics for surveillance, thereby preventing the Union from exercising the potential power of the Persistor Infrastructure. The death of President Edwinson in 2056 opened new doors for the Union. Almost immediately, the Inquisition exploited the Persistor Infrastructure, which had over just twelve months infiltrated the homes of almost fifteen million citizens; with little effort, the Personal Management Interface engineered to include a microphone and recording device, and was officially named Persistor ONE-Two. Shortly after, the nickname 'Watchkeeper' became commonplace. Whether or not this name came about because the general population realised that the seeming innocent Personal Management Interface had been distorted into a surveillance tool is unknown. Upgrading from Xeros to Albatron See also: Xeros Infrastructure and Albatron Infrastructure The Albatron Infrastructure is the direct successor to the Xeros Infrastructure, and as such was developed by the College of Wisdom - more specifically the Department of Whispers - with the assistance of Tetrach Industries and Indigo Inc. The previous iteration of the Watchkeeper, the Xeros ONE-Four, was plagued with problems that included difficulty with the user interface, compromised security and integrity, and poor audio quality. In 2089, the College of Wisdom decided that the cost to upgrade and maintain the Xeros ONE-Four (along with the rest of the Xeros Infrastructure) was more than it would cost to build and install and completely new Infrastructure from the ground up Within eighteen months, the Xeros Infrastructure had been replaced by the Albatron Infrastructure to the critical acclaim of the vast majority of consumers. The upgrades made to the Watchkeeper software in particular were praised as 'intuitive' and 'slick'; the decision to provide the Watchkeeper software to all citizens of major cities free of charge was also celebrated. Unbeknown to the critics, however, this decision was not fuelled out of generosity, but instead out of the Inquisition's desire to put a microphone and camera in every household in the nation. Functions The Watchkeeper